Method for bending articles of glass or other thermoplastic materials



Dec. 31, 1957 Filed Oct. 2, 1950 R. E. LAMBERT EIAL 2,817,928

METHOD FOR BENDING ARTICLES 0F GLASS OR OTHER THERMOPLASTIC MATERIALS 2 Sheets-Sheet l Y INVENTORQ 060? [44/45 MAM /er BY Ma /:2 00559;

@0022 Q. [5am ,4770/QA/EI/ R. E. LAMBERT ET AL 2,817,928 METHOD FOR BENDING ARTICLES OF GLASS OR OTHER THERMOPLASTIC MATERIALS Dec. 31, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed 001;. 2, 1950 INVENTORS @0552 [14/45 [AW/35?? BY, Moe 4 5055M?" United States Patc 2,817,928 Patented-Dec. .31, .1957

fFon BENDING ARTICLES 01 GLASS OR OTHER THERMOPLASTIC MATERIALS Roger Emile Lambert, Paris, and Michel Dubesset, Le 'Vsinet, France, .assignors to Societe Anonyrne des flvlam'tfactures des Glac'es ;& 'Produits Chimiques de Saint-Gobaim-Chauny & Cirey, Paris, France Application OctoberZ, 1950, Serial No. 1871964 -Glaims priorityfapplicationFrance October 3, 1949 TCIaiins. (C1. "49-84) v Thepiesentinventionhas for its object'a method for "shaping articles of glass or other thermoplastic materials, aiidfrh'dreparticularly articles the curvature of'which'is '1 flerefit in the central part and on the borders suc'h as rerexampie, "certain Watch glasses, and the "plates con- "isti'ttiti'ngth'e b'ottom of the televisionb'lilbs 'whicli'have at their e'dg'esa"curvatiir'e much more accentuated 'than'to- I wajr tls' the center. This invention'relates. also tothemanufaitiirefofar'ticles having a surface part 'idfw'hic'h is 'p'lane,

"therernai'ningpar't having a determined curvature.

' 'flisiialfprocesses for making curved'glass c'o'n'sist "geherallydn.presingsheets, previously cutito the appro- "priate sizes, between two conforming elements, and heating the whole to a temperature suflicientto obtain'afso'fteiling "sufficient to (permit the desired deformation.

In se tfe'rtainzones of an object are to 'be'p'rovided with a veryaeeenmated curvature, it has been necessarytoheat "'the piecefto' a hlgh temperature with the result that "the ipf'ss'i'tig 'ftencau'ses alterations of the surfacessuchfas "pinhdles andscratches, which are the more marked as the temperatureis' 'higher. Thosealterations areprejudi- -*(Eialtbthe"qu'alityofthe finished article as they "appear masonr -on the parts of the surfa'ce'havinga greatc'u'rva- '"tlllrebiif'also on anyother part of the surface.

The objector the present invention is to produce a thermoplasticarticle having different parts "differently curved while'avoiding any such alterations of 'thesurfa' sg 'at least in the part or the article having the smallest curvture, *whien' generally Constitutes" the most important jbartfofthearticleantl'where it'is essential that'the"article Ben/idiom defects.

'"I'hemrethod, according to the invention, for producing an-article of glass, or' other thermoplastic materials, hav- -ticle, -at *-last for the parts which must have the moreacc'efituate'd curvature, 'isobtained by pressing in amould "6r on-a 'form.

The"pre-sha'pedarticle, in its" first shape, -may have been *preparedat any time, but it is-advantag'eo'us' to have the final shaping follow'the' preliminary shaping immediately.

It-is' thus-possibleto take advantage of the heat retained from the. preliminary shaping operation.

In case the article to be obtained has a plane part oonneetedto a part-ofgreat curvature,-the operationof 'pre- -shaping-consists in forming a plane sheet. Suchsheets are manufactured currently and can be obtained in trade,

In such a case, the two operations are obviously effected seperately.

In any case, in order to carry out the final conformation, it is necessary, according to the invention, to heat the ,parts having a small curvature or no curvature at all and .the,.parts 'whichmust receive a greater curvatureto difierent temperatures. For this purpose, different means can be usedwhich areall comprised-withinthe. scope of the' invention and the examples given hereafter are not to 'be considered as. limitative in this respect.

It is possible to obtain an unequal heatingof .thefdiiferent parts'by hea-tingameans arranged and regulated in an appropriate. manner.

It is alsopossible to submit the piece on all its surface tto .an almost uniform heating to a temperature sufficient to obtain the most accentuated curvature, however in such a case the part already conformed to the desired smallest curvature. is submitted, at the same time, to acooling action. 'This. cooling can. be obtained, for example, by bringinga metallic mass into contact with the part thatis .not to be fur'ther deformed, thus dissipating part ,ofthe calories which are transmitted to it by the heatingmeans, it being possible to submit this metallic mass itself to. a permanent or intermittent artificial cooling.

v "I f'necessary, it'is also possible, in order to obtain greater eifi'cien'cy, to combine the. stated cooling method witha heating that is applied more intensively to the .part which has to undergo the most accentuated deformation than to the parts'that have acquired their final shape.

"Byway of examplqlthere is described hereafter with references to lth'eattac h'e'd drawings, two forms of realisa- "tion of fan apparatus and a machine according to the 'invention.

Figs. 1, 2 and 3 show schematically an apparatus for "b'endi'ng pieceshaving :a curvatureincreasing frornthe 'cen'tre tothe edges. r

Fig. '4'shows an axial section of an automatic'ma'chine for the shapingof eye glass lenses, the central .partsof which are "relatively plane andthe' borders of which are greatly curved. Fig. 5 shows an element of this machine.

Fi'g. ls'hows'the sheet or blank ofglass 1 which is so. be conformed according to the shapedalbsho'wn in Fig.3.

the'fietermined curvature whichis to be given to the'centra'lpart ofth'e article 'to be manufactured. The iglass'and the'mould are heated to an'appropriate temperatureftheh a vacuum is created inthe space comprised'betweed't'he 'glassa'nd the mould, through an orifice3 passing through "the"bottom'of themotild and communicating'withia vac- "uumiputnp. 'On account of the difler'enc'e of pressure exerted on its twoisurfaces, the whole glass sheetis'caused to take the curvature intended only for its central part.

As this'operation is'efiected at'a temperature'wh'ich may *be relatively low, the deformationto "be given to the glass be'ing-smallyand' as on the other hand' 'the'glass is not pressed-mechanicallyagainst the bottom of"the mo1ild; it

istlius possible to avoid'any'marr'in'g of th'esurface; whidh remains perfectly polished.

" 'Fhen airis causedto-"enter through orifice '3; the piece,

thus freed; is taken-mp by -a 'suction element 4 (Fig. 2)

0f:a convexiform ihaving the same curvature as' the 'cenltralipart :of the'p'iece. :T'his suction element has :a (hollow v chamber 37 communicating with the exterior' ithrough orifices swlocated innthe' part of the element engagin'githe piece. 1A vacuum: isexerted in chamber 71through=uan orifice--9-communicating with the vacuum pump. I he pieceisthusasuspendedon the suction elementaxbywthe 7o -vacuum. @By-means of an annular gas burner5, fonexample, placed. beneath the 1 piece, :the borders of v this:pie ce are then heated very hot whereas its central part is cooled by its contact with the metal of the suction element. In order that the heating shall also be applied to the top surface of that part of the glass which is to be greatly curved, orifices of small dimensions are provided around the suction element to draw the flames inward over the edge and in heating relation to the top of the plate in such a manner that the glass is heated on both sides at the rim.

The piece, still remaining suspended on the suction element, is then brought to the mould (Fig. 3) which is hollow in the central part 6a which corresponds to the part 1a of the piece which already has its final small curvature. This mould has the shape 1b to be given to the border of the piece. The piece is pressed between the mould and the suction element and receives thus its definite shape; this pressing is facilitated by the vacuum exerted continuously through orifices 10. The piece is then freed by penetration of air into chamber 7.

The succeeding operations can be effected mechanically and automatically.

Fig. 4 shows, in a perspective view, an automatic machine for the manufacture, by the process of the invention, of watch glasses, which are curved only on their border, and are plane in their central parts.

The machine is composed essentially of a stand 11 containing the driving device which causes the vertical shaft 12 to turn at regular intervals and each time for a fractional part of a revolution. This vertical shaft 12 bears the plate 13 on which are disposed at regular intervals the suction elements 14 described in the following paragraphs.

Each of these suction elements is connected by means of pliable pipes 15 to a corresponding hole in a head 16 rotating with shaft 12. This head 16 is adjustable on a circular fixed shaft 17 connected to the stand by an arm 18, the support of which is not shown on the drawing. The holes in the head 16 emer e at the level of two circular grooves. not shown, Drovided each on a part of the circumference of the shaft 17, which successively connect each of the suction elements with a vacuum source and the atmosphere.

In the hollow column 19 supported by the stand of the machine are stored the flat discs 1 out of which the watch crvstals are to be made.

On the base of this column is disposed a slide 20 cou-- pled to a motor piston reciprocating in a cylinder 21 operated by compressed air. The movements of the piston are controlled by those of the machine in such a manner that every time a suction element is stopped before the column 19, the lower disc, before which the suction element has arrived. is pushed by the slide 20 on to an element partially shown at 22, where it is centered. Under the action of another pneumatic cylinder, hidden in the stand of the machine, this centering element is lifted and brings the disc against the vacuum face of a suction element, where it remains suspended. The orientation of shaft 17 is regulated in such a manner that the vacuum is applied to each suction element at this station. The length of the circular groove of shaft 17 connected to the vacuum source is such that the vacuum remains connected to the suction element in the course of the greatest part of the revolution of plate 13. Pulmb with the station points of the suction elements, vertical gas burners are provided, some of which are shown at 23, and which are regulated in an appropriate manner so as to heat the glass progressively until the borders reach the appropriate temperature. At station 24 the curvature is taking place, according to the invention, the disc being still suspended on the suction element. Immediately afterwards, in the course of the revolution of plate 13, after the suction element has left station 24, the curved finished glass is detached from the suction element by admitting atmospheric air to the suction element through the second groove in shaft 17. Finally, at the next station, the suction element is cooled by means of an air blowing system. Then it is ready for a new cycle.

The same cycle is repeated mechanically in the same manner for each suction element, the number of curved glasses for a revolution of the plate 13 being equal to the number of suction elements. Thus curvature taking place at station 24, can been effected, according to the method described above, by pressing the disc of glass in a form as shown in Fig. 3.

By way of another example, there is described hereafter another mode of application of the conformation method which is the object of the present invention, applied to the machine considered. The suction element shown in axial section on Fig. 5 comprises a hollow body 25 fixed beneath plate 13 in the following manner: a cylinder 26, bears at 27 on the plate, and a cylindrical extension 28 of the cylinder 26 is seated in a hole in the plate of corresponding shape; it is terminated by a threading 29 on which the hollow body 25 is screwed. On the latter is screwed in its turn a piece 30 provided with a circular orifice 31. The shape 32 of this piece has the curvature to be given to the article along its borders. Slidably mounted in the orifice 31 is a movable piece 33 having a hollow chamber, the lower plane wall 34 of which is provided with holes 35 of a small diameter.

The piece 33 is mounted on the end of a pipe or hollow piston rod 36 which carries piston 37 in cylinder 26. The pipe 36 bears an enlargement 37 limitating the travel of the piece downwards. The pipe 36 is put into communication successively with the vacuum and with the atmosphere as explained above.

At the moment the centering element has been lifted up, the glass disc 1 has been applied against the lower face 34 of piece 33 on which it remains suspended due to the vacuum created in it. During the stopping above the burners, the disc 1 is heated and its temperature is rising more on the borders than in the central part which is cooled by the colder metal in contact with it. The difference of temperature is accentuated by providing means 34 with a channel 38 which creates a vacuum in the chamber of the hollow body 25, thus causing a suction of air through the orifices 39 provided in a mold 30 disposed around it. The air exhausted through these orifices causes the flames to pass around the border of the plate 1 and thus to heat the rim of the disk 1 beneath and above. This arrangement reduces the time of heating and consequently increases the output of the machine.

By these two means it is easily possible to obtain the ditference of temperature which characterises the present invention, this difference being maintained by cooling plate 34 by means of an air jet after the curved glass has been freed.

The suction element having arrived at station 24 of Figure 4 the pipe 36 is lifted up suddenly by finger 40- see also Fig. 3which, in the course of the revolution of the plate, has been engaged between the chamber 26 and a flange 47 of the end of pipe 36, then the pipe is taken back downwards by a movement in inverse direction of finger 40.

In the upward movement, the disc 1, the borders of which have then reached the desired temperature, is brought into contact with the periphery of the lower side 42 of mould 30 and, under the effect of the vacuum exerted between mould 30 and the disc 1 through the channel 38 and the orifices 39, the disc is pressed by the atmospheric pressure against the mould 30, the central part of the bottom of which is formed by plate 34 after it has been raised. Then the operation is terminated. After the descent of the tube 36, the glass is freed by the penetration of air in to tube 36 in the course of the intermitted fractional turn of the apparatus and the suction element is ready for a new operation.

The ascending and descending movements of the finger 40 are obtained through a lever arm 43 articulated on an axis 44 mounted on the stand of the machine, this lever receiving motion from the piston rod of a pneumatic cylinder 45 (Fig. 4).

The best conditions are provided by the suction element described to obtain glass articles without any alteration of their surfaces the glass being in contact with the metal on one side only and not supporting any mechanical pressure. In particular, the central part of the glass article, although it is in prolonged contact with the metal, remains practically without any alteration, as it is not heated to the softening temperature.

The machine described hereinabove is intended to manufacture articles such as watch glasses, having a curvature only on the borders. In case the centre part itself is to be given a curvature, but less accentuated than that of the borders, the machine can easily be adapted to the manufacture of those articles. It would be sufficient to give to the surface 34 of piece 33 the curvature to be given to the centre part and to feed the machine with the articles premanufactured to the preliminary shape having said curvature. It would also be possible to combine the machine with a machine manufacturing the articles with the preliminary shape and delivering them at the rate of the first machine.

What is claimed is:

1. A method for the production of articles of thermoplastic materials, in particular of glass, having two different curvatures, which comprises conforming a glass blank by heat to a preliminary uniformly curved shape having the smallest curvature desired, cooling the blank in said shape, heating only that part of the blank which is to have a different curvature to molding temperature, and maintaining a heat exchanging mass of selected conformation in contact with the part of the blank that is to retain its preliminary shape, whereby to maintain therein a temperature between the lowest temperature at which tensions are released and the temperature at which defects may appear in the surface of the article, and bending the more heated part of the blank to the final curvature in a shaping device of selected conformation.

2. A method for the production of articles of thermm plastic materials, in particular of glass, having two different curvatures, which comprisies bending an entire blank to a preliminary shape having a single curvature being the smallest curvature desired in the final article, applying heat of softening degree, substantially uniformly, to the whole blank and simultaneously cooling the part thereof which is to keep the smallest curvature to a temperature between the lowest temperature at which release of tensions occurs and the temperature at which defects may appear in the surface of the article, and in bending the more heated part of the blank to the precise shape desired therein.

3. A method according to claim 2, in which the said cooling is obtained by contact with a conductive mass having the said smallest curvature.

4. A method according to claim 3, in which the said mass is artificially cooled.

5. A method for production of articles of thermoplastic materials, in particular of glass, having two different curvatures, which consists in bending a blank to a preliminary shape having the smallest curvature desired in the final article, cooling the blank, applying heat of softening degree to one whole face of said blank evenly, applying heat of softening degree to only those parts of the opposite face to which a more accentuated curvature is to be given, and pressing the parts of the blank heated on both faces to shape in a mold.

6. A method of bending glassware to a shape of compound curvature that comprises heating a glass sheet, applying atmospheric pressure to one side of the sheet, reducing the pressure on the opposite side of the sheet until the articles has assumed a predetermined curvature, cooling the sheet, maintaining those parts of the sheet that have attained their final curvature at a temperature between the lowest temperature of release of tensions and the temperature at which defects of the surface may appear during the remainder of the process, supporting parts of the bent, cooled sheet that are not to be further bent with at least one broad surface thereof out of contact with material objects during the remainder of the process, applying heat of softening degree to the parts of the sheet that are to receive a further bending to bending temperature, and pressing the reheated parts to the desired shape.

7. A method of making watch glasses according to claim 6 in which the sheet is first given the final curvature of the central part of the watch glass, the edges are thereafter heated while the central part is cooled, and the edges are pressed to final form.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,057,763 Boyles et a1 Oct. 20, 1936 2,131,873 Goodwillie Oct. 4, 1938 2,152,754 Wagner Apr. 4, 1939 2,176,999 Miller Oct. 24, 1939 2,218,654 Paddock Oct. 22, 1940 2,266,484 Weber Dec. 16, 1941 2,348,905 Hopfield May 16, 1944 2,370,575 Owen Feb. 27, 1945 2,377,849 Binkert et al June 12, 1945 2,377,946 Leary June 12, 1945 2,394,934 Orser et a1 Feb. 12, 1946 2,450,297 Pearse et a1 Sept. 28, 1948 2,570,309 Black Oct. 9, 1951 

